The present invention relates to a heat transfer recording apparatus, and more particularly to a heat transfer recording apparatus which is adapted for use with a cassette accommodating an ink material between a feed roll and a take-up roll and in which the ink material and a recording sheet overlapped thereto are passed between a platen and a thermal head pressed thereagainst for thermally transferring ink images to the recording sheet.
Unexamined Japanese Patent Publication SHO No. 60-27580 discloses a heat transfer recording apparatus of the type mentioned for use with a synthetic resin cassette containing an ink material. The disclosed apparatus is so adapted that a material take-up mechanism for driving the take-up roll is manually disconnected from the take-up roll before the cassette is removed from the apparatus.
The ink material can be set in the apparatus and removed therefrom easily by the use of the cassette, while the cassette, which is made of synthetic resin, is lightweight and inexpensive. However, the cassette of the conventional apparatus is still inconvenient to load into or unload from the apparatus since the take-up mechanism must then be connected to or disconnected from the take-up roll manually.